1. Technical Field
The present invention is directed toward a hinge for a casement window, and more particularly toward a geared hinge for a casement window.
2. Background Art
A casement window has a window sash movably mounted in a frame by a pair of hinges located between the window frame and upper and lower horizontal sides of a sash. Both the upper and lower hinges typically include a track mountable to the window frame and a sash arm mounted along the horizontal sides of the window sash. A support arm is pivotally connected to the track and the sash arm. A first mounting shoe slidingly supports the sash arm on the track.
During operation, the casement window is movable between a closed position and an egress position. When in the egress position, the window sash extends generally normal to the window frame and adjacent to one side of the window jamb. The egress position maximizes the amount of unobstructed opening to facilitate escape through the casement window in the event of an emergency. When in the closed position, the inside of the casement window can be easily cleaned from the room interior. However, the outside of the window is not readily accessible in the egress position since the sash is too close to the window jamb to allow a person to reach out and wash the outside of the window.
More complex prior art structures include a second mounting shoe having one end of the support arm pivotally mounted thereto. The second mounting shoe can be manipulated to either be slidingly received by the track or fixed to the track. During normal operation between the closed and egress positions, the second mounting shoe is fixed.
The prior art casement window hinges with two mounting shoes allow the casement window to achieve a wash position in addition to the egress position. Typically to obtain the wash position, these hinges are first placed in the egress position, then both top and bottom hinges must be manipulated to release the second mounting shoe, and finally both the top and bottom of the sash must be grasped and pushed simultaneously towards the wash position. If either the top or the bottom of the sash alone is driven, the casement window may twist and bind and not move into the wash position. If the person forgets to release the second mounting shoe for one of the hinges and the sash is driven with sufficient force, the casement window sash, the hinges, or window glass can be broken causing unneeded expense and injury.
Still other casement hinges include sophisticated mechanical apparatus which achieve both egress and wash positions through continuous cranking by an operator. At some point, the movement of the sash becomes a purely sliding motion with no rotation of the casement window. When the sliding motion occurs, these prior art hinges require complex structures to drive both the top sash and the bottom sash simultaneously towards the wash position.
The present invention is directed toward overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.